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DPA 2017 - New Shotgun Mic for 2023


Derek H

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Something new from DPA at a really good price (under $1000). 

 

Specs look to be on par or better (lower noise, lower current, higher headroom) than the 4017 but with no switchable filters. I don't think I'd miss them though because this, like the mini CMIT, has a built in roll off starting at about 60Hz. A little less presence boost than the 4017 otherwise very flat. 

 

Form factor seems nice at a little over 7" but with enough preamp section to be easily mountable in a variety of shock mounts. A little heavier than the miniCMIT. Also they're touting it as extremely durable and water/humidity resistant. Here in Chicago I saw a picture of them putting golf balls with it. No mention of RF immunity.

 

Wouldn't mind trying one!

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I'd guess DPA wants to compete with people considering mics such as the Sanken CS-M1, and whatever else costs around US$1000 (stating the obvious is my super power).

 

I find it interesting that in their three-minute intro video, a rather big of the time is spent explaining stuff like "you might need a shock mount and wind protection," and "don't tape over the interference tube slots." So I guess they see potential in convincing people to step up from Rode, Deity, and the like.

 

Cool to see DPA expand their reach. Will be interesting to hear how these perform in the real world. 

 

 

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7 hours ago, Jim Feeley said:

I'd guess DPA wants to compete with people considering mics such as the Sanken CS-M1, and whatever else costs around US$1000 (stating the obvious is my super power).

 

Yup, I'd say it is aiming to line it up directly against the (in)famous Sennheiser 416. 

Which when on special (i.e. "always", it is its street price), is priced exactly the same as this new DPA at $999:

https://www.adorama.com/semkh416p48.html

https://www.locationsound.com/sennheiser-mkh416-p48u3-shotgun-microphone-1141 

 

As that is the mic every newbie / videographer / hobbyist seems to aspire to own (especially if they're unaware of newer ones such as the 8060, or other brands such as Sanken/DPA/Schoeps/Neumann/etc. Which is usually the case, they're often enough unaware of any other models of "premium shotguns"). 

 

7 hours ago, Jim Feeley said:

I find it interesting that in their three-minute intro video, a rather big of the time is spent explaining stuff like "you might need a shock mount and wind protection," and "don't tape over the interference tube slots." So I guess they see potential in convincing people to step up from Rode, Deity, and the like.

 

Yup, while all this info is dead boring obvious for people like us, for their broader target market it's worthwhile putting out a slick looking video covering the basics. 

 

Hopefully the DPA 2017 becomes their best ever selling (non-lav) microphone. (with the volumes lavs sell at, I doubt it will ever be able to outsell those!) 

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Strange price indeed. But as I understand it is extremely reliable. Making it a desirable choice.

“ I am getting my minicmit serviced and possibly will get the new capsule that is supposed to be better in humidity.”

AS far as DPA goes It worked great  in 100% humidity 120F in the tunnels under lake mead for many years. 

I would love to try it out. 

 

But when it comes to 4017/4018 vs Schoeps the schoeps is noticeably better sounding,

I have been using the cardioid MK4 lately and is so much more natural sounding than mk41.

Cardioid in my opinion sound better than super/hyper cardioid.

Wide Cardioid sounds the most natural  but not really isolating.

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I never got a chance to really listen to it, but I worked a tennis event this summer and DPA gave us a number of these to put through the paces. We had over 100 mic's deployed around the grounds and one court was wired specifically DPA. Probably not the best test for how they sound, but a good one for durability (once set they lived outside in the elements for about 3 weeks). I spoke with the A1 who had that court and he said he couldn't hear too much of a difference over the other courts (all 416's), but they were a little more prone to wind noise. 

 

Again, this situation isn't the best for sound quality, broadcast is much dirtier than what I think we are all used to. Their mentality is is it reliable and sound good enough? If so it'll work for them. That said, didn't hear any issues from them throughout the entire time, so check one for reliability.  

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  • 10 months later...

So I demoed a 2017 for about a week last year shortly after I originally posted here. I tried it out on my show (I was booming some and mixing some). I compared it directly with the miniCMIT we usually use. It sounds good! Very clear, very detailed, no noise floor.  


Operating it was a little trickier than the CMIT. With the CMIT it’s easy to blend between actors and even cover overlaps in certain situations. That was a little bit harder with the 2017 as the voice seemed to fall off faster when not on axis. I think given enough time operating it I would adjust and it would get easier but my being so used to the way a CMIT handles I think exacerbated the differences for me. 
 

Also, the CMIT sounded just a bit “nicer” to my ear. I guess that’s to say the CMIT is a little warmer (a touch less high freq detail maybe) though I think the difference would probably be lost on anyone other than sound people listening on headphones. I’m sure post would be happy with either. I would compare it to the difference between a 50 and a 41. Both are good but the 41 can be a little nicer and a little more natural. I would say generally the 2017 sounds a little more like a mic kind of in the same way a 416 or 50 does compared with a Schoeps but actually less so than those two. 
 

Despite the massive price difference between the 2017 and a miniCMIT I thought it was very comparable and I’d be happy to have a couple on set. 
 

I think for bag work it’s a no brainier. Very heavy duty feel. Almost like a baby 416 in that the mic body is solid brass and there’s no switches or capsule to unscrew.  It’s about 20-30mm longer than the mini CMIT but I actually like that. Makes it much easier to put in a variety of off the shelf mounts and have it perform well. Price is also great for ENG work. 
 

Overall I’d recommend it and if I had some money to burn I’d probably buy two. 


Actually, anyone want to buy a CS-3e?

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Wow, the specs really do look very good! Only weight and size are letting it down somewhat. I am a big fan of the 4017c, mostly for its pickup pattern, so I‘d be very curious to try the 2017, which could be a very good backup mic. Also, I am having trouble with one 4017 with rf interference, so this could be interesting. 

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On 9/13/2024 at 4:12 AM, Constantin said:

Wow, the specs really do look very good! Only weight and size are letting it down somewhat. I am a big fan of the 4017c, mostly for its pickup pattern, so I‘d be very curious to try the 2017, which could be a very good backup mic. Also, I am having trouble with one 4017 with rf interference, so this could be interesting. 

The main reason I swapped my 4017 for schoeps was the RF. That and I gave mine to a sales rep to give it as a demo and he left the company and never gave me the 4017 back. 🙂

 

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20 hours ago, RadoStefanov said:

The main reason I swapped my 4017 for schoeps was the RF. That and I gave mine to a sales rep to give it as a demo and he left the company and never gave me the 4017 back. 🙂

 


What??? That’s terrible! 
Totally understand giving up the 4017 because of RF. I just stopped using mine more or less altogether. Sometimes I switch to an HM transmitter to make it work. But my current MO is to not use shotguns altogether, so it matters less than it used to
 

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